WTF Facebook?

The first screen shot is from my wall, the second is a copy that is on the main news feed of the same post. This image:

is not on Michael Moore’s website (at least not in relationship to this article.)

This article is highly critical of the Obama Administration.

I want to know how this happens.

Please repost.

AN OPEN LETTER TO ALL OF MY FRIENDS (and mainstream media) – PLEASE READ.

from my good friend John Christian Sevcik:
Hello–is anyone out there still listening? Mic check. 

AN OPEN LETTER TO ALL OF MY FRIENDS (and mainstream media) – PLEASE READ.

Hi guys,

I know I’ve been posting a lot over the last week. I hope all of you know me to be an intelligent and rational person who wouldn’t bombard you with information unless it was absolutely necessary. I want to take a minute to talk about that ‘why’–to hopefully get you to understand how important it is that you pay attention. Please grant me these few moments, and, if after reading this, you’re still not interested in what I’m attempting to share with you, I thank you for your time and encourage you to disregard any subsequent posts.

Still here?

We proceed.

1.
When television first began being broadcast in this country, the media was accountable to its viewers. Networks would not be issued a broadcast license by the FCC unless they agreed to provide so many hours of informative programming each day, informative being the operative word here. This is way back when the news still looked and sounded like news and the press still believed in the idea of journalistic integrity.
The reason that the FCC was allowed to require this of these networks–they are broadcasting on public airwaves. That was the fee for using these airwaves–informing the public.
My point–the airwaves used to broadcast by these networks are yours and mine. They use a public infrastructure–those airwaves belong to all of America.

2.
Media is considered by sociologists to be one of main institutions of socialization.
A socializing institutions–family, religion, education are examples of some of the other institutions–are the ways in which we as citizens become members of our society. It is through these means that, as we are raised, we come to hold our beliefs about the world around us–our norms, values, and social mores.
It is for the reason that the idea of the media of a country being accountable to its citizens is so important. It is for this reason the press should feel a moral responsibility to journalistic integrity.

3.
In the same way that we find it unconscionable and unethical for a political campaign to receive disproportionate funds from a contributor, we should understand that information is a currency, and when it is unevenly distributed, it is unethical and creates an imbalance to justice.

4.
Since September 17th, organized demonstrations on financial districts, to protest wealth inequity and political corruption that have led to poverty for millions if not billions, have been occurring in cities all over the world and most importantly in our own country. Most people in our country have no idea that this is occurring because mainstream media has imposed an almost ubiquitous blackout.

5.
Even if you don’t agree with what’s occurring right now with the OccupyWallStreet movement, even if you find yourself unmoved by it, or politically apathetic in general–I know that many of my friends no longer believe in the idea of their own political efficacy–I urge you to consider the implications of tolerating media blackouts.
Twenty-four people showed up to the big Tea Party Rally that filled the airwaves at the advent of their movement. OccupyWallStreet has thousands demonstrating in cities all over our country, tens of thousands all over the world and has yet to be picked up by CNN, FOX, or MSNBC in their primetime news hours.

It’s okay to not want to be politically involved with the movement, but, in my opinion, it is not okay to be complacent in the intentional ignorance imposed by the media.
By standing up and spreading information by means of social networking, by demanding that your local and national media pay attention, you are simply fighting for access to information.
Even are you already informed and don’t care, I pose to you that you still have a moral and ethical obligation, a duty as a citizen of our society and citizen of the world to stand up to media blackouts and do you everything you can to make sure that others are informed and have the chance to decide their own level of involvement.

6.
I would be lying if I said that I wasn’t disappointed in the vast majority of my friends right now. I know you to be intelligent, compassionate, ethical people–yet the general apathy I’ve seen in the last week has shocked and disgusted me.

7.
If you are entirely comfortable with your position in life, with the economic and political climate of our country, if you see nothing wrong with the media, if you feel no unrest at all, then by all means, go back to doing whatever it is you were doing.
But if you see what I see, if you feel as I feel, and if you would seek as I seek — then I urge you to join me in sharing information.

With an abiding love and a deep concern,
John Christian Sevcik & Ron Heacock
NOTE: Please sign your name to this and re-post. Pass it along! 

 

HillHouse Writers News July 2010

It has been a busy time here in Southern Tennessee!

Both Karen and Ron are currently enrolled in a low residency degree program at Goddard College
http://www.goddard.edu/ (Yes, it’s fun to getaway from the farm sometimes and where someone else gets to cook for usJ)

We installed an 80′ X 24′ foot hoop house (which is a plastic covered green house) to extend our growing season so we can have homegrown Lettuce in December!!!

We have joined forces with The Writers Retreat. Look for Karen’s forthcoming article on mentoring! (website: http://www.writersretreat.com/)

We have a great audio interview thanks to Jan Bear (listen to it here: http://writing-retreat.com/blog/?p=40)

HillHouse is now available for weddings and events (Our daughter celebrated her marriage to Steven McAlister with 100 of their closest friends at the farm on May 1 – and we had so much fun we’d like to do it again.) See Ron’s toast here: http://hillhousefarmsblog.com)

Recent guest, D. Michelle Adkerson, wrote the most amazing testimonial (read it here: http://hillhousewriters.com/Templates/testimonial.htm

HillHouse T Shirts are now available and we are taking suggestions for new designs (check out our store on Zazzle: http://www.zazzle.com/ronheacock).

Free Mentoring Special!! As a summer special, free organic* mentoring will be offered to writers who reserve their stay for any 2010 date that is booked before August 15^th

*The organic gentle approach to mentoring at HillHouse is a very different process than most workshop/line-editing, left brain/right brain creative encounters. We read the whole manuscript (story, poems, or script) and discuss the big picture long before anyone even thinks about the nitty-gritty of line edits. Mentoring becomes the elusive bridge between the open-door/closed-door processes of creation. This allows a writer to gently discover the structure from within a piece of work. The best words for the job surface like top cream and we discover we have the patience to stick with the project for as long as it needs it. Mentoring helps a writer hone the effort into an act of deep expression which both humbles the creator of that expression; and in turn, the work becomes that which the outside world can easily understand. In other words, the writing evolves into the best that it can be, and the artist shines brighter because of the process. Organic mentoring leaves a writer feeling nurtured, satisfied, and ready for the next step. If a writer ever feels defeated, we have missed the mark. Our job is to naturally inspire the creative process for any individual who becomes our guest.

Coming soon: A HillHouse Cookbook!
Recipes will be available once per month.

How to revise your novel

I do not normally promote on line offers but this one is different. If you are a writer, and you have already written a novel but you are sure it needs something (and what that may be is eluding you…) check out Holly’s class.

If you are trying to write a novel and you are hung up (or just want some help) check out HillHouse Writer’s new mentoring offer- Send Karen an email at karen@hillhousewriters.com.

Click here: How to revise your novel

HillHouse Writer’s Retreat Guest Menu 7-/8 – 7/14

Hello friends.

I have not been posting menus lately. That does not mean we have not had guests. I made a HillHouse breakfast tart this morning and it came out beautifully and it reminded me that you all might enjoy knowing how well we eat when we have guests. The common question at about day 3 is always:”Do you eat like this all the time?” And the stock answer is: “Only when you are here.” The reality of it is that we eat nothing but popcorn and milk in between guests (that is a poke at Karen, who will often eat only that when no one is home <grin>.

A note about this menu: Our guest for this stay has food sensitivities. You may note that potatoes, red peppers and eggplant are conspicuously missing from the fare; no nuts either. We can tailor our preparation to your needs. Just ask!

July Promotion

Also, while we are on the subject of stays, we are running a promotion. The month of July is just about filled up. But reservations are still available from the 26^th through September 30, 2010. As a special promotion we are offering free mentoring and writing assistance for stays reserved before the end of July. Space fills up quickly and we do not always get a chance to post availability immediately so please call or be flexible. Karen will be creating a detailed description of the HillHouse Standard Mentoring Program soon- you will be able to find it on this blog and through our newsletter (sign up at: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/hillhousewriters/join). Additionally the HillHouse website has some new additions (like a kick-butt testimonial and a few other hidden improvements- search around…) and we are now affiliated with The Writers Retreat (found here: http://www.writersretreat.com/retreatdetails.php?id=81) and as a result we will be doing periodical workshops at the farm- check out their site and stay tuned for updates. Finally, we are now offering T-Shirts through Zazzle. (http://www.zazzle.com/ronheacock) And we are taking suggestions for new shirts, pictures & captions. Please send all of your ideas, no matter how corny, to me at ron@hillhousewriters.com or post them on my FaceBook wall: http://www.facebook.com/ronheacock.

Finally, we got the Galen and Steve’s wedding pictures back. I will do a post for that soon as well. We are doing weddings at the farm; Email me for more info.

Have a great summer- we hope to see you at the farm.

Day 1- Thursday July 8

Breakfast – Traditional

We always have on hand: Farm fresh eggs, Bagels, salmon spread, nuts and seeds, oatmeal, bacon, country ham, pork patty sausage, whole wheat & Whole grain seeded rye bread for toast with butter & jam, assorted berries & fruits and homemade maple granola.

Lunch – Sandwiches

We always have a large variety of whole grain breads (Rye, wheat, etc). In addition to leftovers we also periodically make salads (chicken, tuna and wild rice) – occasionally there will be soups depending upon weather and dinner selections. Normally we keep several cheeses and one or two staple cold cuts available as well.

Dinner – Grass fed beef Texas (revised) red bean chili*, rosemary garlic corn bread sticks, salad w/chabata croutons – lime ice

Day 2- Friday July 9

Breakfast – Traditional

Lunch – Wild Rice Salad, meat and cheese rollups

Dinner – Cornmeal catfish over rice, broccoli w/hollandaise, Cuban bread -

Day 3- Saturday July 10

Breakfast – Traditional – fresh fruit salad, fresh squeezed juice

Lunch – Grilled Pizza- homemade cheese, garlic olive oil, yellow & green squash

Dinner – pork picatta (capers, marsalla, shallots) over angel hair pasta

Day 4- Sunday July 11

Breakfast– Traditional

Lunch – Chef’s choice

Dinner – Roast chicken, roasted root vegetables, haricot verts with orange butter sauce

Day 5- Monday July 12

Breakfast– Traditional- HillHouse Breakfast Tart

Lunch– Chinese chicken salad lettuce wraps or sandwich

Dinner – Dry Smoked chicken and ribs, local Amish corn of the cob, grilled asparagus, salad- peach or apple pie/cobbler, homemade ice cream

Day 6- Tuesday July 13

Breakfast – Traditional

Lunch – Left-over’s / sandwiches

Dinner – Stuffed Chicken Breast, sautéed spinach w/pine nuts and garlic, rice

Day 7- Wednesday July 14

Breakfast-Traditional

Lunch – sandwiches/ left-over’s

*Chili normally contains tomatoes and red peppers- we will be making substitutions in order to avoid these nightshades

To Galen, on her wedding day, May 1, 2010

In 1982 Karen and I were expecting our second child. Unfortunately during labor, a short while before she was born, her heart stopped beating. The hardest part about that time was explaining to an expectant 5 year old Justin that his baby sister (who he had named Little-By-One) would not be coming home- that, and the feeling that my daughter had somehow chosen not to be born. Whether something was incorrect with the body we had made for her or our relationship was somehow unprepared, at the last moment she backed out as if to say “no, not yet.”. It didn’t make rational sense, but the feeling persisted for years.

We tried again in and in 1985 our beautiful son Morgan was born, literally kicking and screaming. He was and has always been a joy. But the space left by my missing daughter persisted. Somewhere in the back of my mind I felt that she was still poised there, waiting to be born.

One night, four years later, I we decided to try again. I think the conversation went something like…

INTERIOR SCENE BEDROOM NIGHT

RON: “Hey, wanna make a baby?”

KAREN: “Sure.”

CUT TO

INTERIOR SCENE BEDROOM MORNING

RON: “Whoa, what were we thinking?”

Too Late.

I am sure in retrospect that Galen was hovering just on the other side at precisely the correct moment of ovulation urging us to let her through. That is just her style you know; persistence coupled with excellent timing. Even if it may not seem excellent at the time, it has always turned out to be right.

So, some 7 years (almost to the day) following the birth of Little-By-One, Galen Kahlyl Heacock was born, in a cooled down hot-tub, in Marquam Oregon. This may have influenced her propensity for baths (sometimes several a day as a young girl).

I do not have any proof that soul had almost been born in 1982 and then, through some change or maturing process decided that the time was finally right to take the female form in 1989. But, the feeling that I was waiting for her all that time suddenly and completely evaporated.

Fast forward twenty years.

Lest you think that twenty years is not old enough for the inexperienced to even contemplate, let alone enter into the long term and complex contract of marriage, let me assure you that as young as they are Galen and Steven have worked at preparing their relationship for several years. They have lived together here at the farm and alone in their own home in Murfreesboro. They have had their trials, experienced separation and the effects of then trying to live apart. I have watched them. And remember that Galen has excellent timing- even if it may take a while to recognize how perfect it really is. I believe they have a better chance of success than most.

I have some experience along these lines.

I picked up Galen’s mom hitchhiking, almost 35 years ago. We knew each other for three months before we were married. Though this unique fact has been used against me in the decades between, I can tell you that Steven and Galen possess the keys to make the contract work:

1. Flexibility.
2. Knowing when to give in (for the greater good).
3. And the almost obsessive and most important trait of all- never, never, never giving up.

And even so, they will need your help.

I have a friend, Mikhael Yowe, who recently graduated from Goddard College with his Independent BA. As a senior thesis project he created a guide to rites of passage called The Core Ritual. His postulate was that our society (and in fact most modern societies) do not include complete rites of passage. Through his research he determined that an effective and complete rite includes 1) Separation; The removal of the candidate from their current social standing, 2) Transition; the process of initiation usually accomplished through some personal challenge or trial, and 3) Reintroduction; the process of welcoming and re-integrating the initiated back into the community.

I asked Mikhael about marriage as a rite of passage. He explained that our society’s current marriage ritual lacks the reintroduction phase. The married couple is not welcomed back into the culture at large with the confirmed intent of bringing them back into the fold (as it were) of the greater community to which they now belong.

I have understandably spent a good deal of time lately wondering about the ritual of marriage. And I think this is why we traditionally assemble a large group of our closest friends and family to witness and celebrate the largely symbolic connecting of two people into the union of marriage.

And it may even go deeper than that.

There may be a more mystical union taking place. Whether or not you believe in a Supreme Being or underlying spiritual current supporting the universe, there is something powerful and binding about making the commitment to love, honor and cherish each other in sickness and in health, for better or for worse, until death parts you. It may just be the overwhelming traditional weight of those words but I think not. Something elemental changes when you marry.

We are called upon today to transform this event into a real change in the way we see and support Galen and Steven.

With this toast let me declare to the universe that we welcome Galen and Steven McAlister into the greater community of our human family. It may not yet feel different to them but we should all pause and reflect how it will be different for us. Because now, where they were two separate individuals we will forever consider them as one. Think of it like a new born child; as a bundle of love and potential.

20 some years ago Galen, we made you from our love, maybe twice. And it is with these seeds of love that we send you on to your marriage with Steven to create your own traditions and seeds to carry forward in the unbroken line of love that extends backwards through time from the beginning of all human existence.

Now that you have committed to carry one another’s burdens the weight will never be more than you can bear.

With the greatest love and affection,

Your Dad

 

 

 

 

 

Shopping for Piglets

I thought I would feel differently. I thought I would never want another pig. The day before yesterday they took my pig to slaughter. We had a trial run the day before that, with Hen Wen (named after the Lloyd Alexander character) examining the truck, walking down to the ramp munching the lawn and tasty bits until everyone conveniently decided she would not take the leap into the truck and they would return again another day.

It’s been a long road for me reconciling the slaughtering of a beloved barnyard creature. I kept feeling I might keep her, have her bred and therefore; postpone the experience for her piglets. I know my vegetarian friends would argue why did I even have to make the decision, and some health conscious foodies might claim pork is not very healthy for you anyway, but the truth of the matter is she ate well, lived a good life surrounded by love, and we bought her with the intention of developing a food source for us as sustainable farmers. I have type “O” blood. My body does better with a high protein diet. I know that eating meat keeps me healthier. It’s a catch 22. I love my animals, I need to eat them.

I came home late the day they came to load Hen. The farm is now quiet. She does not complain that she needs her scoop of corn first. I miss my friend. After two days I know I want another pig.

I’ve been reading, The Shack for school. It’s a story about a man who needs to find love after the death of his child. He finds God (literally) and has long conversations about love and relationships. It’s a wonderful book, so I won’t say anymore. But it leads me to wonder, would anyone trade the life we live, if we knew it was going to be snatched away from us? And yet, the end is inevitable. We will someday all be gone from this world.

It is a question of faith for me. I believe that we all are SOUL and that the body is NOT US. We exist beyond our death. The last time I saw Hen I whispered to her, “Hurry back.” I couldn’t help myself. It was the only thing I could say that felt right. I said it even though I was thinking I would never buy another pig. I was not really built for this kind of experience. How can I love and kill that which I love?

Today I’ve decided that the joy we will share will be worth the small price at the end of the road. Ultimately, the joy is much stronger than any loss or pain. I say small not because I think the cost of her life was a small thing. It was a great sacrifice. I say it because the love outshines the pain a thousandfold. Today I am calling the pig breeder to see if he has any piglets coming soon. I think I will pick the pinkest pig, but probably more likely I will pick the one who has some strange sense that she knows me.

I can’t say I have truly reconciled the slaughtering of a beloved barnyard creature. But I am coming closer to it. When the pork comes home in freezer packages, I will have to eat it to honor the life we shared. It oddly feels sacrilegious, not to. Perhaps next year, I will be able to perform a sacred slaughter. This time I am glad it’s just the silence I hear. And it makes me want to go shopping for piglets.

If Pigs Could Fly ~ ©k. walasek January 7, 2010

for Cooper

How quickly you left diving

Beyond the quilted grey

I rocked the empty weight

That you once called home

 

I imagine your dreaming

Your third eye sparkles

Explosive rainbow force

That escapes like steam

If pigs could fly they would

Rocketblast fast as Sunlight

Breaking clouds to stars

Mere seconds to be gone

 

Push back purple and green

Fat Pigs RUN like wild horses,

How quickly you FLY! Wait,

Wait… I can’t catch up

 

 

 

 

 

 

If pigs could fly, of course,

They would leave behind all

The extra heaviness, proving

Without a shadow of a doubt

- That animals have a soul.

 

 

Sweet Dreams, Cooper

Religion and Living in the US

Christmas is almost here. Today is Karen’s last day before a week off. Justin is taking the day off to shop. Galen is back together with her long term boy friend (more on this later) and Morgan (who cannot get away from work over the holidays this year – and as a result will not be home for Christmas for the first time) is going to visit for 3 days right after New Year’s.

Tis the season, so they say. And it is beginning to feel like Christmas. I guess that’s why those are such popular songs. They embody truths that never fade. Sort of like the Declaration of Independence and the US constitution – that is a funny comparison: Johnny Mathis and the poet John Ceiriog Hughes* with Thomas Jefferson and James Madison.

I do not view this as a religious holiday. Since my family was never affiliated with any religion when our kids were growing up and several holidays were considered very kid-oriented, we celebrate in a very secular way.

I was raised in a similar household (without the spiritual awareness aspect that Karen and I have tried to inject) so that background informs my belief that the country we live in is also similarly secular.

It is also my opinion that the founding fathers (and I mainly mean Jefferson, his protégé Madison and Franklin when I say that – which is probably inaccurate, but for now let’s just stick to my opinion – I don’t want to break my flow) had the good sense to build a decidedly secular foundation into our constitution.

I have decided that (this is going to sound rather soundbite-ish, but I really have a lot of depth behind this opinion, so please bear with me) the separation of church and state was built into the constitution because the government didn’t want the competition.

I am really talking about an economic competition but it can be extended to include a competition for hearts and minds (please ignore the fact that this has become cliché – read it for what it says: if the church has unrestricted ability to control the beliefs and emotions of the government then the government cannot be representative of the people because not all the people are going to agree with one belief or emotional trigger – no matter what the advertisers want us to believe).

You may have seen the bumper stickers that say something to the effect of “Don’t Steal, the Government doesn’t like competition.” It is not really that sentiment, more like the church in the late 1700s was a big corporate interest; one with a tremendous brand loyalty. So in order to create a republic that could effectively govern they sought to eliminate undue influence my limiting religious involvement in the US government. Too bad they didn’t realize that corporations would gain even more power than the church in the coming centuries (see the film, The Corporation (Achbar, 2004) for a good overview of the history of corporate charter –that is subject for another discussion).

Back to my feelings about religion and living in the US…

Now the subject of keeping Government out of religion and religion out of government has become very muddy.

I am writing this mainly because I realize that I am disturbed by what I view as an overt attempt by secular interests to hijack the secular country that I thought I was living in.

I craft that sentence specifically so because I also realize that my point of view is biased. The country may not have ever been as secular as I was led to believe- I am the product of my parents and my geo-political, socio-economic upbringing (which is a fancy way of saying my parents were fairly liberal agnostics and the area of the suburban Northeastern US that I lived in from the late 50s to mid 70s was a fairly affluent, non-religious, integrated, educated area). I also suspect that there are political forces, motivated by money (the only true motivation it seems) that are leveraging these non-secular viewpoints to create dissension between groups who basically believe in the same thing. A divide and conquer strategy if you will, that drives wedges between the citizens as a means of weakening coalitions before they can even recognize themselves. It pisses me off. The very language used is a way to separate and antagonize.

I get emails from relations who are campaigning for the eradication of the ACLU on the grounds that it is anti-religion. Christ, if you look solely at me seeing only my constitutionalists point of view I am anti religion. That is not the same thing. I listen to pro-choice and pro-life arguments and I am further frustrated by the obvious elements that are missing from the conversation (mainly that the folks who are interested in preserving a separation of our US system of laws from religious laws are called pro-choice and are de facto labeled by the opposition as anti-life & the people who say they are trying to protect the sanctity of human life have no clue how many human lives they are responsible for killing themselves) both sides (to varying degrees) are clueless pawns in a power struggle. It pisses me off that both sides lack the education to properly debate and discuss the subject. That the media plays on this fact and contributes to it and the majority of people (watching the sideshow performance art called cable news) don’t even know what they are hearing. Citizens should be able to govern themselves. That means they must be well versed in subterfuge, the politics of power, logic, debate, history (all humanities!), how to read, how to write (and not just words on a page but understanding subtext and communication). People are lazy because they have been convinced to be lazy. I cannot decide if it was planned or if it is just another massive under-calculation by lazy legislators. What a mess!

I vacillate between wanting to devote my life to education so I can help change this discussion and wanting to buy a big sailboat and run away from the mess. The problem is that there is really nowhere to run. <sigh>

There are people who get different parts of this but few who can see a whole. They see their own parts of the “elephant in the room” (to mix several metaphors – I love English, it is such a delight) but they lack the overview, the historical perspective that allows navigation to a solution. And I am not talking about the soundbite political process either; I am referring to a new kind of politico-academic citizen.

Our country needs a better educational system which somehow combines classical truth with street smart truth. Once there is a critical mass of this sort of thinking, legislative office holders would be better suited to chart this route to real solutions (and in theory, they would be supported by a similarly educated constituency). They would have to be politically savvy; understanding the way the system does work and the way the system was designed to work and being able to tread the narrow path between. Weed out the waste, close the loopholes and prevent them from being opened again as part of the checks and balances that were built into the governing framework. It requires a systems/holistic approach, not a symptoms based, reductionist approach. And to implement such approaches the general population would have to be able to understand the difference and support the one over the other. Rather than being ruled by fear and ignorance we would be ruled by reason and understanding. Government could have a chance to operate as the constitution say “By the people, for the people.” Not by the power hungry and greedy over the lazy, ignorant, duped and cowering masses.

Do you think such a thing is possible? How would one begin? What is the quickest path to market for these life affirming/nation altering ideas? How does one present these ideas that essentially say I must live a primarily agnostic/atheistic life in order to reserve my own beliefs (and allow all people to reserve theirs) for the systems of life and government to operate to everyone’s best interest (as a whole, almost species centric rather than individual centric while still celebrating the individual) ?

Are these inescapable paradoxes or would a broader point of view show their unification?

I know one thing. The situation as it stands is fucked up. And if I have learned one thing in my life it is that everything has a reason- and that understanding the reason gives us a clearer path to change. This mess can be changed, improved, bettered. I just wonder what I am supposed to do to help.

*John Ceiriog Hughes (25 September 1832 – 23 April 1887), was a Welsh poet and well-known collector of Welsh folk tunes. Sometimes referred to as the ‘Robert Burns of Wales’ thought to be the author of the first published lyrics to the song “Deck The Halls“

A Different Kind of Literacy, A Different Kind of Conversation

For the past several months I have been working at a local housing authority. It has been the culmination of several years that I have been exploring the nonprofit world of people and organizations that are poised to help the most disadvantaged. There’s a longer story to be told of my experiences, but the one I want to address here is literacy. Literacy is how well we communicate meaning to others. Generally we think of literacy as the ability to read and write in our native tongue. And yet my experience has led me to believe that there is a broader understanding of the word.

Poverty scholar Dr. Donna Beegle does an admirable job of examining all the Invisible illiteracies a person faces when moving from one social class to another. Actions, and behaviors that mean one thing to a group of middle-class-literate teachers, may hold a completely different meaning to a child or parent literate in poverty 101. Social scientists often address these varying meanings as cultural differences and biases, but one need only spend ten minutes with teenagers from the ghetto to know whether or not you are literate in the language they are speaking. I am not literate in that kind of English. But at least I know it. http://www.combarriers.com/

Yet to read and write is a give and take. When we read we are listening to someone from outside of ourselves. When we write, the flow turns direction. In a true dynamic conversation the flow is cyclic. We read and write. We don’t like to separate the two. Like peas and carrots, bread and butter, light and dark, sun and moon. Our language and our lives are filled with pairs. It’s as natural as putting on our socks and shoes before walking out of the door. I was pondering such pairs and literacy when I came across the Nashville Film Institute’s poster: Speak Film.

Speak film. I was flabbergasted. Did I know how to speak film? Could it be our nation of movie watchers and coach potatoes were suffering from a different kind of illiteracy? To be truly literate in convening meaning we needed not only to read, but to write. When we are engaged in a media that holds an unending one way conversation there is bound to be a price. How is it we’ve become a complacent people where all that is being spoken to us in the media is something we need to absorb? At what point does it become a citizen’s responsibility to learn how to speak back?

Did you see that show last night? Yeah, maybe, but how many of us know how to “speak film” back to the TV? If the success of you- tube, FaceBook, and reality TV is any indication, the time is ripe for a new kind of literacy. Speak Film. To speak film one must know how to… oh, I don’t know, hold a camera, maybe. Shoot, edit, act, write, read and speak in images.

Imagine if just 1% of our population could learn to speak film in nine months? The time it takes to birth a new babe? What If we became a film literate society, so that we could become active participants in our image dialog? Forget one way TV, Speak film. What a concept. How does this new awareness in literacy change the way I will approach my creative literary work when pursuing my MFA at Goddard College this spring? Speak Film. I will have to ponder the possibilities of this new language and my responsibility in becoming literate. http://www.goddard.edu

If this speaks to you, check out http://thenfi.com/ and consider the possibilities of your own new literacy. Tell them I sent you. Speak film. I’ve got to get me one of those bumper stickers.